Endeavour 43 Sailboat Review, Specs, and Listings

Design and Construction

Bob Johnson drew the 43 as a substantial displacement centre-cockpit cruiser carrying 33,000 pounds on a 35-foot waterline and 14-foot beam, with 12,000 pounds of internal lead ballast encapsulated inside a keel molded integrally with the hull. The hull itself is a single molded unit of polyester resin, fiberglass woven roving, and multidirectional chopped strand fiber; the deck and cockpit are the same combination molded as one piece, with plywood coring laid into the cabin top, deck, seats, and cockpit sole for stiffness. Endeavour finished the non-skid into the deck mold and closed the hull-to-deck joint with a stainless-steel-bolted flange coated in adhesive-sealant, then capped it in teak bedded in compound to doubly ensure water tightness. The rudder is a single piece of solid high-density foam with a fiberglass skin, its solid stainless post welded to an internal steel blade and passing through the hull via a stuffing box. Below the waterline, metallic fittings are electrically bonded with copper wire, a detail that speaks to the builder's methodical approach to corrosion control rather than any afterthought.

Rig and Handling

Offered in ketch and cutter configurations (with sloop also listed among rig options), the 43 carries extruded aluminum 6061-T6 spars, the main mast keel-stepped through the cabin roof and the mizzen deck-stepped with a support post. Standing rigging attaches to stainless chainplates through-bolted to a hull with added fiberglass reinforcement, and halyards of wire-and-dacron run externally for easy service. The numbers tell the sailing story: a displacement-to-length ratio of 343.61 marks her as heavy, while a sail-area-to-displacement ratio of 14 is frankly low. The shoal keel — quoted at 5 feet 3 inches in the builder's spec yet reported by one owner at 6 feet and listed by a review at 5 feet 6 inches — sacrifices windward ability but suits reaching and the shallows. With that 33,000-pound mass she shows a comfortable, very dry motion, and one reviewer who dragged a spreader in the waves twice reported she came upright without trouble. Yet the same heft brings enough weather helm to frustrate windvanes, and off the wind her broad stern tends to get pushed around in following seas, a trait one Pacific voyager notably did not experience.

Accommodations

Johnson's brief was a roomy two-stateroom mid-cockpit layout, and the result sleeps at least six between a forward V-berth, an aft stateroom, and saloon settees. Owners consistently praise the comfortable, well-styled quarters with a healthy 6 feet 7 inches of headroom, and the aft stateroom — with its transverse queen, cedar-lined locker, drawers, and private head — is a particular favorite. The saloon pairs a fold-up table with starboard settees and port captain's chairs, while a forward-facing nav station and a port galley with double sink, Adler-Barbour refrigeration, and a gimbaled three-burner oven serve the living spaces. A walkthrough on the engine room's port side, fitted with lockers and either a workbench or pilot berth, leads aft. Storage is so ample that the source calls the phrase an understatement, and the interior is finished in varnished teak over soft white overheads with a parquet sole bonded to the hull. There are 14 opening ports plus four large deck hatches of drop-forged aluminum with Lexan that light the spaces.

Equipment and Mechanical

Nearly every 43 left the factory with a Perkins 4-154 diesel of 62 hp driving a 1-1/4-inch stainless shaft through a Hurth mechanical gearbox to a standard 18x18 two-blade bronze prop, with a three-blade option. An eight-kilowatt Onan generator sits forward of the insulated, well-accessed engine under the companionway. DC power runs from two parallel 12-volt batteries with red/yellow coding; AC draws from twin 30-amp shore lines or the generator at 115 volt. Pedestal steering works through stainless cables and a chain-and-sprocket quadrant on the rudder post.

Known Issues

The principal handling caveat is the weather helm sufficient to make self-steering difficult, as one professional review found anchor, alongside the large stern's tendency to skate in following seas off the wind. Anecdotally, one owner's boat was wrecked after pounding for 48 hours in surf on return to Australia, a reminder that no volume cruiser is immune to grounding outcomes.

The Verdict

The Endeavour 43 is a thoughtfully built, enormously habitable shoal-draft cruiser whose weaknesses — soft upwind tracking, notable weather helm, a stern that needs watching off the wind — are the direct price of her 33,000-pound comfort and Florida-friendly keel. For the sailor who values dry motion, storage, and a private aft suite over racing the buoys, she remains a sensible period choice.

Pros